Category: GATE Biotechnology 2012 Previous Year Papers with Solutions

Category: GATE Biotechnology 2012 Previous Year Papers with Solutions

GATE Biotechnology 2012 Previous Year Papers with Solutions

Q.65 A political party orders an arch for the entrance to the ground in which the annual convention is being held. The profile of the arch follows the equation y = 2x − 0.1x2 where y is the height of the arch in meters. The maximum possible height of the arch is (A) 8 meters (B) 10 meters (C) 12 meters (D) 14 meters

Probability That a Reliable Shock Absorber

Q.64 An automobile plant contracted to buy shock absorbers from two suppliers X and Y. X supplies 60% and Y supplies 40% of the shock absorbers. All shock absorbers are subjected to a quality test. The ones that pass the quality test are considered reliable. Of X’s shock absorbers, 96% are reliable. Of Y’s shock absorbers, 72% are reliable. The probability that a randomly chosen shock absorber, which is found to be reliable, is made by Y is (A) 0.288 (B) 0.334 (C) 0.667 (D) 0.720

Q.63 Which of the following assertions are CORRECT? P: Adding 7 to each entry in a list adds 7 to the mean of the list Q: Adding 7 to each entry in a list adds 7 to the standard deviation of the list R: Doubling each entry in a list doubles the mean of the list S: Doubling each entry in a list leaves the standard deviation of the list unchanged (A) P, Q (B) Q, R (C) P, R (D) R, S

Mean & Standard Deviation

Q.62 Given the sequence of terms, AD CG FK JP, the next term is (A) OV (B) OW (C) PV (D) PW

Letter Sequence Pattern Mastery

Q.61 Wanted Temporary, Part-time persons for the post of Field Interviewer to conduct personal interviews to collect and collate economic data. Requirements: High School-pass, must be available for Day, Evening and Saturday work. Transportation paid, expenses reimbursed. Which one of the following is the best inference from the above advertisement? (A) Gender-discriminatory (B) Xenophobic (C) Not designed to make the post attractive (D) Not gender-discriminatory

Job Ad Inference Analysis

Q.60 Choose the most appropriate alternative from the options given below to complete the following sentence: Despite several ––––––––– the mission succeeded in its attempt to resolve the conflict. (A) attempts (B) setbacks (C) meetings (D) delegations

Sentence Completion Mastery

Q.59 Which one of the following options is the closest in meaning to the word given below? Mitigate (A) Diminish (B) Divulge (C) Dedicate (D) Denote

Mitigate Synonyms

Q.58 Choose the grammatically INCORRECT sentence: (A) They gave us the money back less the service charges of Three Hundred rupees. (B) This country’s expenditure is not less than that of Bangladesh. (C) The committee initially asked for a funding of Fifty Lakh rupees, but later settled for a lesser sum. (D) This country’s expenditure on educational reforms is very less.

Identifying Grammatically Incorrect Sentences

Q.57 Choose the most appropriate alternative from the options given below to complete the following sentence: Suresh’s dog is the one ––––––––– was hurt in the stampede. (A) that (B) which (C) who (D) whom

Suresh’s Dog Grammar Quiz

Q.56 The cost function for a product in a firm is given by 5q2 , where q is the amount of production. The firm can sell the product at a market price of 50 per unit. The number of units to be produced by the firm such that the profit is maximized is (A) 5 (B) 10 (C) 15 (D) 25

Profit Maximization with 5q² Cost Function

β-Galactosidase bound to DEAE-cellulose is used to hydrolyze lactose to glucose and galactose in a plug flow bioreactor with a packed bed of volume 100 liters and a voidage (ε) of 0.55. The K'm and V'max for the immobilized enzyme are 0.72 g l−1 and 18 g l−1 h−1, respectively. The lactose concentration in the feed stream is 20 g l−1, and a fractional conversion of 0.90 is desired. Diffusional limitations may be ignored. Q.55 The feed flow rate required for the above bioconversion will be (A) 50 l h−1 (B) 55 l h−1 (C) 137 l h−1 (D) 550 l h−1

Feed Flow Rate Calculation

β-Galactosidase bound to DEAE-cellulose is used to hydrolyze lactose to glucose and galactose in a plug flow bioreactor with a packed bed of volume 100 liters and a voidage (ε) of 0.55. The K'm and V'max for the immobilized enzyme are 0.72 g l−1 and 18 g l−1 h−1, respectively. The lactose concentration in the feed stream is 20 g l−1, and a fractional conversion of 0.90 is desired. Diffusional limitations may be ignored. Q.54 The residence time required for the steady state reactor operation will be (A) 0.1 h (B) 0.4 h (C) 1.0 h (D) 1.1 h

Residence Time Calculation

An E. coli cell of volume 10−12 cm3 contains 60 molecules of lac-repressor. The repressor has a binding affinity (Kd) of 10−8 M and 10−9 M with and without lactose respectively, in the medium. Q.53 Therefore the lac-operon is (A) repressed and can only be induced with lactose. (B) repressed and cannot be induced with lactose. (C) not repressed. (D) expressed only when glucose and lactose are present.

Is the lac Operon Repressed or Induced?

An E. coli cell of volume 10−12 cm3 contains 60 molecules of lac-repressor. The repressor has a binding affinity (Kd) of 10−8 M and 10−9 M with and without lactose respectively, in the medium. Q.52 The molar concentration of the repressor in the cell is (A) 0.1 nM (B) 1 nM (C) 10 nM (D) 100 nM

Molar Concentration of Lac Repressor

The purification data for an enzyme is given below: Step Process Volume (ml) Total protein (mg) Total activity (Units) Specific activity (Units/mg) P Cell-free extract 17 177 102 0.58 Q Q-Sepharose 14 18.8 72 3.83 R Phenyl Sepharose 26 9.2 45 4.89 S Sephacryl S-200 7 4.1 30 7.32 Q.51 The yield (%) for each step is (A) P-10, Q-7.2, R-4.5, S-2.0 (B) P-34, Q-24, R-15, S-1 (C) P-3.4, Q-2.4, R-1.5, S-0.1 (D) P-100, Q-71, R-44, S-29

Enzyme Purification Yield Calculation

The purification data for an enzyme is given below: Step Process Volume (ml) Total protein (mg) Total activity (Units) Specific activity (Units/mg) P Cell-free extract 17 177 102 0.58 Q Q-Sepharose 14 18.8 72 3.83 R Phenyl Sepharose 26 9.2 45 4.89 S Sephacryl S-200 7 4.1 30 7.32 Q.50 The fold purification for each step is (A) P-0.1, Q-0.66, R-0.84, S-1.26 (B) P-1.0, Q-0.52, R-0.67, S-0.8 (C) P-1, Q-6.6, R-8.4, S-12.6 (D) P-100, Q-66, R-84, S-12

Fold Purification Calculation

In a muscle, the extracellular and intracellular concentrations of Na+ are 150 mM and 12 mM, and those of K+ are 2.7 mM and 140 mM, respectively. Assume that the temperature is 25°C and that the membrane potential is −60 mV, with the interior more negatively charged than the exterior. (R = 8.314 J mol−1 K−1; F = 96.45 kJ mol−1 V−1). Q.49 The free energy change for the transport of two K+ into the cell is (A) +8.0 kJ/mol (B) +11.6 kJ/mol (C) +19.6 kJ/mol (D) +31.2 kJ/mol

Free Energy Change for K⁺ Ion Transport in Muscle Cells

In a muscle, the extracellular and intracellular concentrations of Na+ are 150 mM and 12 mM, and those of K+ are 2.7 mM and 140 mM, respectively. Assume that the temperature is 25°C and that the membrane potential is −60 mV, with the interior more negatively charged than the exterior. (R = 8.314 J mol−1 K−1; F = 96.45 kJ mol−1 V−1). Q.48 The free energy change for the transport of three Na+ out of the cell is (A) +1.5 kJ/mol (B) +17.4 kJ/mol (C) +18.9 kJ/mol (D) +36.3 kJ/mol

Free Energy Change

Q.47 A bacterial culture (200 μl containing 1.8 × 109 cells) was treated with an antibiotic Z (50 μg per ml) for 4 h at 37°C. After this treatment, the culture was divided into two equal aliquots. Set A: 100 μl was plated on Luria agar. Set B: 100 μl was centrifuged, the cell pellet washed and plated on Luria agar. After incubating these two plates for 24 h at 37°C, Set A plate showed no colonies, whereas the Set B plate showed 0.9 × 109 cells. This experiment showed that the antibiotic Z is (A) bacteriostatic (B) bacteriocidal (C) bacteriolytic (D) apoptotic

Unraveling Antibiotic Action

Q.46 An enzymatic reaction is described by the following rate expression: v = vmS km + S + S2 / ks Which one of the following curves represents this expression?

Substrate Inhibition Kinetics

Q.45 Consider the data set 14, 18, 14, 14, 10, 29, 33, 31, 25. If you add 20 to each of the values, then (A) both mean and variance change (B) both mean and variance are unchanged (C) the mean is unchanged, variance changes (D) the mean changes, the variance is unchanged

Adding Constant to Dataset

Q.44 Match the vitamins in Group I with the processes/reactions in Group II. Group I                                           Group II P. Pantothenic acid                  1. Electron transport Q. Vitamin B2                           2. Transfer of 1-C units R. Vitamin B6                           3. Decarboxylation S. Folic acid                               4. Fatty acid metabolism                                                      5. Hydrolysis (A) P-5, Q-2, R-4, S-1 (B) P-4, Q-1, R-3, S-2 (C) P-4, Q-2, R-1, S-3 (D) P-2, Q-1, R-3, S-5

Vitamins Group I-II Matching

Q.43 Match the high energy compounds in Group I with the biosynthetic pathways for the molecules in Group II. Group I                                        Group II P. GTP                                        1. Fatty acid Q. UTP                                       2. Phospholipid R. CTP                                        3. Protein S. Acyl coenzyme A                 4. Peptidoglycan (A) P-3, Q-2, R-4, S-1 (B) P-2, Q-4, R-3, S-1 (C) P-4, Q-3, R-1, S-2 (D) P-3, Q-4, R-2, S-1

Nucleotide Energy Compounds in Biosynthesis

Q.42 Match the entries in Group I with the methods of sterilization in Group II. Group I                                                      Group II P. Serum                                                  1. Autoclave Q. Luria broth                                        2. Membrane filtration R. Polypropylene tubes                        3. UV irradiation S. Biological safety cabinets                4. Gamma irradiation 5. Dry heat (A) P-5, Q-3, R-1, S-4 (B) P-1, Q-4, R-5, S-3 (C) P-2, Q-1, R-4, S-3 (D) P-4, Q-1, R-3, S-5

Bioprocess Sterilization Methods Matching

Q.41 Match the organisms in Group I with the entries in Group II. Group I                                                      Group II P. Clostridium                          1. Rods with teichoic acid in the cell wall Q. Escherichia                          2. Rods with endospores R. Vibrio                                    3. Helical rods with flagella S. Bacillus                                  4. Rods with LPS in the outer membrane                                                      5. Curved rods with polar flagella (A) P-2, Q-4, R-5, S-1 (B) P-2, Q-1, R-5, S-4 (C) P-5, Q-4, R-2, S-3 (D) P-3, Q-2, R-1, S-4

Bacterial Morphology Matching

Q.40 A disease is inherited by a child with a probability of 1/4. In a family with two children, the probability that exactly one sibling is affected by this disease is (A) 1/4 (B) 3/8 (C) 7/16 (D) 9/16

Probability Exactly One Sibling Affected by Disease

Q.39 Determine the correctness or otherwise of the following Assertion (a) and Reason (r). Assertion: Cell mass yield of a methylotrophic yeast is more on methanol compared to glucose. Reason: Methanol has a greater degree of reductance compared to glucose. (A) Both (a) and (r) are correct and (r) is the correct reason for (a) (B) (a) is correct, (r) is false (C) (a) is false, (r) is correct (D) Both (a) and (r) are correct but (r) is not the correct reason for (a)

Methylotrophic Yeast Biomass Yield

Q.38 Match the downstream processes in Group I with the products in Group II. Group I                                                                                       Group II P. Solvent extraction                                                              1. Lactic acid Q. Protein-A linked affinity chromatography                   2. Penicillin R. Extractive distillation                                                        3. Monoclonal antibody S. Salting out                                                                            4. Lipase (A) P-2, Q-3, R-1, S-4 (B) P-4, Q-1, R-2, S-3 (C) P-4, Q-1, R-3, S-2 (D) P-2, Q-4, R-1, S-3

Bioprocess Downstream Processing Matching

Q.37 Match the entries in Group I with the process parameters in Group II. Group I                                              Group II P. Clark electrode                            1. Liquid level Q. Redox probe                                2. Dissolved oxygen concentration R. Load cell                                       3. Vessel pressure S. Diaphragm gauge                        4. pH (anaerobic process) (A) P-2, Q-1, R-3, S-4 (B) P-4, Q-2, R-3, S-1 (C) P-2, Q-4, R-1, S-3 (D) P-2, Q-1, R-4, S-3

Bioreactor Sensors Matching

Q.36 Determine the correctness or otherwise of the following Assertion (a) and Reason (r). Assertion: In direct somatic embryogenesis, embryos are developed without going through callus formation. Reason: This is possible due to the presence of pre-embryonically determined cells. (A) Both (a) and (r) are true but (r) is not the correct reason for (a) (B) (a) is false but (r) is true (C) (a) is true but (r) is false (D) Both (a) and (r) are true and (r) is the correct reason for (a)

Direct Somatic Embryogenesis

Q.35 Determine the correctness or otherwise of the following Assertion (a) and Reason (r). Assertion: Plants convert fatty acids into glucose. Reason: Plants have peroxisomes. (A) Both (a) and (r) are true but (r) is not the correct reason for (a) (B) Both (a) and (r) are true and (r) is the correct reason for (a) (C) (a) is true but (r) is false (D) (a) is false but (r) is true

Plants Fatty Acids to Glucose Conversion

Q.34 Determine the correctness or otherwise of the following Assertion (a) and Reason (r). Assertion: The production of secondary metabolites in plant cell cultures is enhanced by the addition of elicitors. Reason: Elicitors induce the expression of enzymes responsible for the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites. (A) Both (a) and (r) are true but (r) is not the correct reason for (a) (B) Both (a) and (r) are true and (r) is the correct reason for (a) (C) (a) is true but (r) is false (D) (a) is false but (r) is true

Plant Cell Culture Elicitors

Q.33 Match the products in Group I with the applications in Group II. Group I                                       Group II P. Digoxin                           1. Muscle relaxant Q. Stevioside                      2. Anti-cancer agent R. Atropine                         3. Cardiovascular disorder S. Vinblastine                     4. Sweetener (A) P-1, Q-4, R-3, S-2 (B) P-3, Q-2, R-1, S-4 (C) P-3, Q-4, R-1, S-2 (D) P-2, Q-3, R-1, S-4

Digoxin Stevioside Atropine Vinblastine Matching

Q.32 What is the rank of the following matrix? 5 3 −1 6 2 −4 14 10 0 (A) 0 (B) 1 (C) 2 (D) 3

Rank of a Matrix

Q.31 Match the terms in Group I with the ploidy in Group II. Group I                         Group II P. Disome                    1. 2n + 1 Q. Monosome             2. 2n – 1 R. Nullisome               3. n – 1 S. Trisome                   4. n + 1 (A) P-4, Q-2, R-3, S-1 (B) P-4, Q-3, R-1, S-2 (C) P-2, Q-3, R-4, S-1 (D) P-1, Q-4, R-3, S-2

Ploidy Matching Explained

Q.30 A single base pair of DNA weighs 1.1 × 10−21 grams. How many picomoles of a plasmid vector of length 2750 bp are contained in 1 μg of purified DNA? (A) 0.30 (B) 0.55 (C) 0.25 (D) 0.91

Calculation of Picomoles of Plasmid DNA

Q.29 In an exponentially growing batch culture of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the cell density is 20 g l−1 (DCW), the specific growth rate (μ) is 0.4 h−1 and substrate uptake rate (v) is 16 g l−1 h−1. The cell yield coefficient Yx/s will be (A) 0.32 (B) 0.64 (C) 0.80 (D) 0.50

Calculation of Cell Yield Coefficient

Q.28 Match the entries in Group I with those in Group II. Group I                                        Group II P. MTT                               1. Dihydrofolate reductase Q. Annexin V                    2. Succinate dehydrogenase R. Methotrexate               3. Microtubules S. Taxol                              4. Phosphatidylserine (A) P-3, Q-1, R-4, S-2 (B) P-2, Q-4, R-1, S-3 (C) P-2, Q-3, R-4, S-1 (D) P-4, Q-2, R-1, S-3

MTT Annexin V Methotrexate Taxol Matching

Q.27 In zinc finger proteins, the amino acid residues that coordinate zinc are (A) Cys and His (B) Asp and Glu (C) Arg and Lys (D) Asp and Arg

Zinc Finger Proteins

Q.26 Which one of the following DNA sequences carries an invert repeat? (A) ATGAGCCCCGAGTA TACTCGGGGCTCAT (B) ATGAGCCGGCTCTA TACTCGGCCGAGAT (C) ATGAGCCGAGCCTA ACTCGGCTCGGAT (D) ATGAGCCTATGGTA TACTCGGATACCAT

Identifying Inverted Repeats in DNA Sequences

Q.25 The helix content of a protein can be determined using (A) an infrared spectrometer (B) a fluorescence spectrometer (C) a circular dichroism spectrometer (D) a UV-Visible spectrophotometer

Protein Helix Content Measurement

Q.24 The molarity of water in a water : ethanol mixture (15 : 85, v/v) is approximately (A) 0.85 (B) 5.55 (C) 8.5 (D) 55.5

Molarity of Water in 15:85 v/v Water-Ethanol Mixture

Q.23 In transmission electron microscopy, electron opacity is greatly enhanced by treating the specimen with (A) ferrous ammonium sulfate (B) uranium acetate (C) sodium chloride (D) basic fuchsin

TEM Electron Opacity Stains

Q.22 While searching a database for similar sequences, E value does NOT depend on the (A) sequence length (B) number of sequences in the database (C) scoring system (D) probability from a normal distribution

BLAST E-Value Explained

Q.21 Synteny refers to (A) gene duplication from a common ancestor (B) a tree representation of related sequences (C) the extent of similarity between two sequences (D) local conservation of gene order

Understanding Synteny in Genetics

Q.20 An example of a program for constructing a phylogenetic tree is (A) phylip (B) phrap (C) prodom (D) PHDsec

Premier Software for Phylogenetic Tree Construction

Q.19 An example of a derived protein structure database is (A) Pfam (B) SCOP (C) GEO (D) Prosite

Derived Protein Structure Database

Q.18 Identify the statement that is NOT applicable to an enzyme catalyzed reaction. (A) Enzyme catalysis involves propinquity effects (B) The binding of substrate to the active site causes a strain in the substrate (C) Enzymes do not accelerate the rate of reverse reaction (D) Enzyme catalysis involves acid-base chemistry

Enzyme Catalysis Myths

Q.17 The activity of an enzyme is expressed in International Units (IU). However, the S.I. unit for enzyme activity is Katal. One Katal is (A) 1.66 × 104 IU (B) 60 IU (C) 6 × 107 IU (D) 106 IU

Katal vs IU Enzyme Activity

Q.16 Which one of the following is NOT a protoplast fusion inducing agent? (A) Inactivated Sendai virus (B) Ca2+ at alkaline pH (C) Polyethylene glycol (D) Colchicine

Protoplast Fusion Agents

Q.15 During photorespiration under low CO2 and high O2 levels, O2 reacts with ribulose 1,5- bisphosphate to yield (A) one molecule each of 3-phosphoglycerate and 2-phosphoglycolate (B) two molecules of 3-phosphoglycerate (C) two molecules of 2-phosphoglycolate (D) one molecule each of 3-phosphoglycerate and glyoxylate

Photorespiration RuBP Oxygenation Products

Q.14 The direction of shell coiling in the snail Limnaea peregra is a classic example of (A) chromosomal inheritance (B) extra-chromosomal inheritance (C) chromosomal translocation (D) homologous recombination

Limnaea Peregra Shell Coiling

Q.13 Protein-DNA interactions in vivo can be studied by (A) gel shift assay (B) Southern hybridization (C) chromatin immunoprecipitation assay (D) fluorescence in situ hybridization assay

ChIP Assay for In Vivo Protein-DNA Interactions

Q.12 A truncated polypeptide is synthesized due to a nonsense mutation. Where would you introduce another mutation to obtain a full-length polypeptide? (A) Ribosomal protein gene (B) Transfer RNA gene (C) DNA repair gene (D) Ribosomal RNA gene

Nonsense Mutation Suppression

Q.11 A protein is phosphorylated at a serine residue. A phosphomimic mutant of the protein can be generated by substituting that serine with (A) glycine (B) alanine (C) aspartate (D) threonine

Phosphomimic Mutant

Q.10 Choose the correct signal transduction pathway. (A) Hormone → 7 TM receptor → G protein → cAMP → PKA (B) Hormone → G protein → 7 TM receptor → cAMP → PKA (C) Hormone → 7 TM receptor → G protein → PKA → cAMP (D) Hormone → 7 TM receptor → cAMP → G protein → PKA

GPCR Signal Transduction Pathway

Q.9 Heat inactivation of serum is done to inactivate (A) prions (B) mycoplasma (C) complement (D) pathogenic bacteria

Heat Inactivation of Serum

Q.8 Nude mice refers to (A) mice without skin (B) mice without thymus (C) knockout mice (D) transgenic mice

Nude Mice Definition

Q.7 Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) is used as a cryopreservant for mammalian cell cultures because (A) it is an organic solvent (B) it easily penetrates cells (C) it protects cells by preventing crystallization of water (D) it is also utilized as a nutrient

DMSO Cryopreservant in Mammalian Cell Culture

Q.6 A humanized antibody is one in which the (A) heavy and light chains are from human (B) heavy chain is from human and light chain is from mouse (C) light chain is from human and heavy chain is from mouse (D) CDRs are from mouse, and the rest is from human

Humanized Antibodies

Q.5 B-lymphocytes originate from the bone marrow whereas T-lymphocytes originate from (A) thymus (B) bone marrow (C) spleen (D) liver

T-Lymphocyte Origin

Q.4 Identification of blood groups involves (A) precipitation (B) neutralization (C) opsonization (D) agglutination

Blood Group Identification

Q.3 Idiotypic determinants of an antibody are associated with the (A) constant region of the heavy chains (B) constant region of the light chains (C) variable region (D) constant regions of light and heavy chains

Antibody Idiotypic Determinants

Q.2 The basis for blue-white screening with pUC vectors is (A) intraallelic complementation (B) intergenic complementation (C) intragenic suppression (D) extragenic suppression

Blue-White Screening in pUC Vectors

Q.1 In mismatch correction repair, the parental DNA strand is distinguished from the daughter strand by (A) acetylation (B) phosphorylation (C) methylation (D) glycosylation

Mismatch Repair Mechanism

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